Recognition, Promotion and Active Participation

SEMA Member News—November/December 2012

Recognition, Promotion and Active Participation

The 2012 SEMA YEN Industry Awards Reception provides an outstanding opportunity for young executives to network, renew established relationships and create new ones.

The 2012 SEMA Show Young Executives Network (YEN) Industry Awards Reception will take place on October 30, in Pavillions 1–2
of the Las Vegas Hotel (formerly Las Vegas Hilton) from 5:00 p.m.–7:30 p.m. The reception provides an outstanding opportunity for young executives to network, renew established relationships and create new ones. It also allows the organization to recognize top individuals in two categories for their industry contributions.

The YEN Young Executive of the Year Award is presented to an individual who has had a positive impact on the industry. The recipient is chosen by how closely he/she meets the following criteria:

Must be a YEN member.

Must have demonstrated exceptional service, integrity, professional growth and business ethics throughout the last 12 months.

Must have demonstrated exemplary performance and/or provided growth for his/her company or industry through his/her actions, visions and/or contributions for the present and future.

The second honor is the YEN Vanguard Award. The following criteria are used in determining each candidate:

Must be a current or past member of SEMA (no age requirement).

Must have demonstrated exceptional service, integrity and business ethics.

The Vanguard Award is presented to a person, company or sanctioning body that has influenced the professional growth and/or cultivation of talent for young executives through actions, mentoring, visions and/or contributions for the past, present and future.

Fellowship Program

YEN offered 12 awards to YEN members to attend the 2012 SEMA Show, expenses paid, for three nights and four days, arriving October 30 and departing November 2. SEMA reimbursed flight expenses up to $350 and provided hotel accommodations as well as a $100 American Express debit card and lunch for each day. Fellowship recipients were asked to participate in specific SEMA Show events, educational seminars, write three short articles, and post content on SEMA Social Media outlets. Watch for details of a similar program to be established for the 2013 SEMA Show.

Member Activation Program

The YEN Member Activation Program (MAP) provides young professionals with the opportunity to “sample” different councils. Each participant who signs up for the six-month program spends two-month stints working with three different councils. Listening in on select committee and member resource pool calls and volunteering for different assignments then allows them to determine what councils fit their career goals best, meet new contacts in the industry and provide other councils/organizations with added manpower and fresh, youth-oriented ideas.

YEN MAP allows YEN to increase communication and participation among the councils. It provides YEN members with new networking opportunities and can help YEN members find new SEMA volunteer opportunities once they age out of YEN and determine where they fit within the overall SEMA organization. It also provides other councils with access to YEN’s member pool for recruitment and increases communication and participation not only between YEN and other councils, but also with the SEMA Board of Directors and SEMA staff.

The YEN Member Resource Pool (MRP) works on initiatives that bring the industry forward and help YEN members grow as individuals. MRP volunteers are involved in projects, such as putting together the YEN Industry Reception for the SEMA Show, working out new educational programs for SEMA and writing content for SEMA eNews and YEN’s social networking pages.

While YEN may be best known for its networking opportunities at industry events, such as the SEMA Show, the group has also embraced the growing popularity of social media by establishing a Facebook fanpage. Visitors to the page find it to be a great place for networking with like-minded automotive professionals as well as reviewing a host of career development and automotive industry resources. Content is updated daily by members of the YEN Select Committee, but all fans of the page are encouraged to participate in the conversations by contributing articles and website links that may be helpful to others.